PC 1370(a)(2)(B) does not require an evidentiary hearing prior to the trial court ordering involuntary medication for an incompetent defendant. Statute permits a ruling based on written expert reports and this protocol satisfies procedural due process under the Mathews balancing test. No equal protection violation occurs despite other statutory requirements for pre-medication evidentiary hearings (PC 1370(a)(2)(C)-(D) [change of circumstance after initial hearing] & PC 2602-2603 [prison inmates]) because a rational basis exists for treating the other two affected groups differently.

The full opinion is available on the court’s website here: https://www4.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/A171414.PDF